Krishnaland

For readers who have seen a lot of my posts, you know how critical i am of today's Iskcon. The truth is, internally i was critical of Iskcon almost since i joined, because i have the kind of mind that cannot overlook or justify exploitation and abuse. And there was plenty of that from the leaders of Iskcon that i saw with my own eyes--and much, much more that i didn't see but heard about-- since the early '70s. The simple fact that Krsna Consciousness is both a process and a goal based on "relationships," the Achilles heel of Iskcon has always been the betrayal of relationships between its temporal leaders and followers.

But in fairness to Iskcon, there have been and still are relationships between devotees that were/are not abusive. Even in today's Iskcon, while i complain and am disgusted by the unresolved issues of the past, and the lack of competence, sincerity and vision of most of its present-day leaders, there are still lots of nice vaisnavas and situations where Iskcon serves the higher purpose that it was created for: to help jivas reconnect with the Supreme Lord thru sadhana bhakti.

I slept last nite at the Chicago temple. Got up for mangal arotik and attended the morning program. Perhaps because i joined in Chicago, way back in 1970, when it was a small, freezing storefront manned by a handful of insanely blissful devotees, i have a soft spot for this temple. It has gone thru many incarnations: at least 3 locations and probably more than 20 Temple Presidents. I was here when a devotee named Rudra was its first TP, and later, when Sri Govinda installed the deities of Sri Sri Kishore Kishori. They asked Prabhupada, who named the deities, why Radharani's name came after Krishna's, when the standard form is that Her name is first. Prabhupada, charmingly replied something to the effect: "We decided to save the best for last."

The current TP in Chicago is an African American devotee, an anomaly in an organization that is run by Indian Americans and some old-timer Iskcon apparatchiks. He appears to be an exceptionally low-key, humble guy. And the temple is basically a brahmacari ashram now, which helps keep the atmosphere free from drama. There are brahmacaries from India, a few from Russia. And one American devotee: a very nice godbrother who has lived in the temple since around 1975. He let me spend the nite on a sofa in the temple library.

When i arrived the Sunday Feast was in full swing. Of course, as usual, it was an Indian American affair. Fat middle aged Indian ladies in saris and gold bracelets, waddled like ducks around the temple. Middle aged men in shirt and pants followed them with their large "pakora" bellies. Lots of young Indian professional couples with their well behaved one, two or three children, were snapping digital pictures right and left of the deities and themselves. It reminded me of a kind of Disneyland where exceptionally pious people go with their families. You can call it Krishnaland.

I arrived after the lecture, so i cannot give my impression of that, but the feast was simple but tasty and the kirtan in the temple was sweet, sung by a devotee who learned how to do kirtan in Vrindavan. The guests stayed for the last arotik and even longer, and the temple shop and a prasadam stand sold their wares. The brahmacaries kept mostly to themselves, but everyone was at mangal arotik six hours after the last guest had left. Another nice thing was there were no high profile gurus or GBCs, and the morning class was given by Srila Prabhupada, from a conversation that was recorded in Bombay! I've been so critical of Iskcon in this blog that i wanted to share something more positive.

So here's the bottom line: There is hope when simplicity and following of the basic mood given to us by Srila Prabhupada becomes prominent. With that as the criteria, there is great hope. Practically, the current generation of leaders should resign en masse from their posts and allow vaisnavas to act like devotees, to have honest relationships with each other where there is less drama and more service. I would gladly renounce all my criticism if such a reality came to be. Of course, that won't happen anytime in our lifetime. But still, i challenge everyone, including myself, to help create such a bright new world, based on honest relationships and a Krishna centered, rather than ego-centered, world. That was the world Srila Prabhupada lived in, and the world he risked his life to give to others, and it remains the most noble object of sacrifice.

Two Worlds-- Or Is It?

The other day i was at the Apple Store to take a tutorial, a one-on-one class with an Apple creative employee. For $100, you get one tutorial session per week, for one year. That's less than $2 for a private class. Another brilliant marketing idea for Apple. The more familiar people are with their computers and software, the more popular they'll become. During the class, the Apple guy asked me if i was going to the "Opening" of the new Apple Store in Boston that evening. I had not heard about it, but he told me the Boston Store will be the largest Apple Store in the world and that evening they were giving away some goodies to everyone who attended the opening. So i thought, why not?

I thought i would just walk in, underestimating the popularity of the Apple brand. When i arrived at the Store, there were queues of over 500 people standing behind police barricades, waiting to get in. The security guys were allowing groups of 10 or so people in at a time. The Store itself was typically design perfect. Three floors of a transparent glass front, with the famous white Apple Logo built in to the glass on the third floor. Inside were lots of camera crews from the local news stations and almost as many Apple staff as guests. They cheered each guest as they entered and exited the store. For some reason, i thought: this is something Srila Prabhupada would envision for the opening of a new temple. There would be a Tilok Logo instead of the Apple, and devotees would greet each guest with a warm welcome, maybe a flower garland and sweet words. Then, after the guests had darshan, they would be given a plate of sumptuous prasadam to take with them. In this way, Krishna consciousness would become part of the popular culture.

Awakening from my daydream, i decided that i had no interest in standing in line for over an hour simply to visit the Apple Store and possibly get a small gift. So i left the scene with the Boston Police, the barricades and queues of curious Apple customers, and walked about five blocks to the Iskcon temple.

Being a weeknite, the temple was empty, except for three young Indian professionals who were singing kirtan during the evening arotik. A young Indian couple also entered during the arotik. Afterwards, the kirtaneers invited the young couple to take some prasadam upstairs. I stayed and chanted some rounds. I was happy to leave the crowds at Apple behind and be in front of the Lord. OK, i thought, it's not popular but it's real. That's a relief.

Today was Narasinga Caturdasi, so i decided to go again to the temple. Today the temple, being Sunday and a holy day, was packed. Again, it was 90% Indian. I arrived during a fire yajna. Fire yajnas were never one of my favorite things. They are Vedic, but in my opinion, Iskcon overdoes them. And why? Because it's a way to get their donors, the Indian community, to give more. It's a ritual they can relate with. I stayed for the yajna and then had darshan of the deities, as the devotees led Guru Puja for the murti of Srila Prabhuapada who sits on a vysasan at the back of the temple. Call me cynical or call me a pasandi (atheist), but i felt not an iota of bhakti in their kirtan. To my ears, it was a show. It appears to me that Iskcon is now a religion like all others, this one catering to its congregation of pious Hindus. And cultivating its donor base. Preaching? Yeah, to the choir.

Maybe if Steve Jobs had met Srila Prabhupada things could have turned out different. It might be just as materialistic, but at least it would have been better designed.

Parama Karuna

One of Srila Prabhupada's favorite Bengali bhajans is a song by Srila Locan das Thakur, Sri Sri Gaura-Nityanander Doya. It's commonly known as "Parama Karuna," from the first two words of the song.

Those two persons, dui jana, who are the supremely kind divinity, are actually Nitai and Gauracandra. They are the most precious of all jewel-like transcendental avatars. Amongst divine incarnations who descend from Vaikuntha, these two are the best. In this descent, they don't kill any big demons with weapons. They deliver the demoniac masses with the power of their Ecstatic Love.

The songwriter then tells the listener: dear brother, with firm faith, let go of your material addictions. Give up the imaginary pursuit of pleasure and prestige in this world. Absorb yourself in Nama prabhu. Chant his names and connect to the Lord.

Then he says: Don't worry, you will never find anyone in this universe more merciful or more generous than these two Brothers. They will easily deliver you. Even birds and animals taste ecstasy and stones melt just by hearing of their transcendental qualities.

Finally, Locan das laments on our behalf. It seems that death will force him to suffer the reactions of his karma, because he stubbornly clings to his material identity. He cries that he is unable to aspire for the lotus feet of Nityananda and Caitanya.

Prabhupada's singing of this bhajan is wonderful. Two versions: CDV 21-05 and CDV 23=05 in the Vintage Series. There are also English purports spoken by Prabhupada after each song.

The End of Politics

After spending valuable time reading the NY Times along with many other online publications (including the Sampradaya Sun), i've come to a conclusion. There is no end to politics.

Politics is about finding fault. Finding someone to blame for our misery. Projecting a demon outside the self. Making a hero out of the false ego, a king out of a beggar.

I read an article about feminism infiltrating Iskcon. Another condemning most of the human population of the world as meat-eating Abrahamic donkeys (referring to every living Jew, Christian and Muslim). These articles were written by thoughtful devotees. It shocked me at first, until i realized that devotees are no different than any other conditioned soul, until they develop real humility and tolerance as taught by Mahaprabhu (trnad api sunicena).

Jnana is not that much different than ignorance until the heart becomes purified and is lit up from realization. Enlightened. Just as power or any opulence can be used for good or bad, so too can knowledge. Ravana was a brahmin.

So the world goes on perpetuating lies about itself. Lies that I am number one. Or as Prabhupada said, quoting the demoniac mind: I am God. That's the essence of politics. I cloak myself in any manner of holy garb: as an ayatollah, guru, monk, priest or president. But whatever my dress, politics means that I have the answer and that the problem is somehow out there, threatening, foreign, to be attacked. That's the false ego projecting the shadow of its own darkness. A perfect example of illusion that is impossible to overcome without surrendering to the Perfect Intelligence.

Pandering Politicians

From a conversation on May 1, 1976 with Srila Prabhupada:
"These leaders, they are samstutah, they are very much worshiped. By whom? Sva-vid-varahostra-kharaih. By the dogs, by the pigs, by the.... sva-vid-varaha..., camel, and by the ass. Because these particular names, I have explained in the Bhagavata... So suppose one man has become lion, and he's praised by dogs, camels, asses, and pigs. Naturally, they will praise, "Oh, sir, you are the king." Does it mean he's king? He's animal.

"So it is going on. They are electing a big animal as president. And when he begins to eat, animal, big animal, then they protest, "Oh, now he's not proper president. Get him down, get him down." But why you sent him? "Because we are pigs; we have no other knowledge. We another, appoint another big pig as our president." Everything is explained in the Vedic literature.

"The voters are sva-vid-varahostra-khara. And the president is another big animal. That's all. This is transaction of animal kingdom. A lion is the king of some asses, pigs, dogs, and hogs. What business you can expect there? This is their real picture. One who is a human being, he's seeing that how the animals are enjoying by voting and electing president. But they are thinking, "We are busy in a very great business. We are electing president."

Now a major election is going on in the US, and the graphic example that Prabhupada took from the Bhagavatam can be seen in the behavior of the pandering politicians running for President. The Republican, John McCain, who wants to keep US troops in Iraq for another 100 years, and the Democrat, Hillary Clinton, who will say or do anything to get elected, are caricatures of the animals Prabhupada spoke about. They pander to the ignorant masses who identify with them based on gender, race, class or so-called values.

Barack Obama is relatively better, at least he has more noble ideals. But he's being chased around the room by other animals with sticks, who accuse him of not being tough enough or middle class enough or 'white' enough to make a good President. It's a very ugly scene. Even if he somehow wins the nomination and election, Obama will be under terrific pressure from demoniac and divisive forces who will do everything in their power to turn the already polarized citizens against him.

The real issues facing the world are so grave they need immediate attention. But they will go unaddressed while people are distracted until our collective karma produces a crisis of huge proportions. It looks like that is coming soon enough. The current transactions of ignorance, dressed up as advanced civilization, will not be sustainable when the economic and political tsunamis hit our shores. The effects will be devastating and global. We are already starting to see the early signs in food shortages, inflation, bank meltdowns and soaring energy prices.

In an eerily similar way, the politicians of Iskcon pander to their congregations, entertaining them with comical anecdotes, bhagavat saptas, sentimental performances and personal stories. None of these methods were taught to us by Srila Prabhupada. But it's good for collecting disciples and donations while travelling around the world accepting gorgeous positions as gurus and quasi-spiritual leaders. In the meantime, their temples (at least in North America) are empty, just like the churches, except on Sundays, when they are filled with pious Hindus who come for darshan. No one talks about varnashram or any serious alternatives to this material society, and no one seeks to bring back the 95% of Prabhupada's direct disciples who left Iskcon and are not welcome back into the "family" unless they come to glorify the saffron-clad leaders who got themselves elected to the vyasasans.

While this game is going on, the collective consciousness of the world keeps accelerating faster towards a crash and transformation that only Krishna knows how traumatic it will be. While blind leaders-- secular and spiritual both-- are pandering and being praised, the world is quickly losing its balance. The compassionate paradigm that Prabhupada taught us was: "let the blind man and the lame man combine to lift up the world." The miserly paradigm now being followed is: "let blind leaders pander and be worshipped by their blind followers. So what if they both land up in the ditch? That's not our business." It's a topsy-turvy philosophy. It's certainly not vaisnava philosophy.

You can know the truth when you can see it. Prabhupada is showing it and teaching us how to see it. But we need to open our ears if we want to see it with our eyes. Is anyone listening past the pandering?

Prabhupada's Melliferous Voice

I've been listening to a lot of the Vintage series of recordings produced many years ago by the BBT. It's a collection of kirtan and bhajan recordings that Srila Prabhupada made, either singing solo, leading kirtans, or sometimes, singing in response to one of his disciple's leading kirtan.

Prabhupada was very humble about his own singing. He insisted his lectures be recorded, for the benefit of his disciples and future generations. But i think it was more by the initiative of his disciples that his singing was also recorded. I was in L.A. in 1972 when he recorded some bhajans at a small studio we had there. We had to ask him to record them. After finishing a bhajan, he asked us if it was all right, and went on to sing the next one. Everything of course was just one take. Sometimes he added his own mrdunga (drum) or kartals (hand cymbals) part on another track. That same year, he also sang the first couple of chapters of Srimad Bhagavatam and Bhagavad-gita-- specifically for me-- to engage me. He suggested that i could go to the temples and teach the devotees how to sing Gita and Bhagavatam verses.

What strikes me most about Prabhupada's voice is how comforting it is. It's like a giant banyan tree, offering beauty and shelter to anyone who comes close to it. Late last nite i was lying in bed, half or 3/4 asleep while a kirtan led by Visnujan Swami was softly playing on my iPod speakers. Then there were some excited sounds, and all of sudden, Prabhupada's voice was leading the kirtan. Hearing his voice gave me a sense of great relief. There was nothing wrong with Visnujana's singing, but somehow it did not pacify me; there was some effort to it. But as soon as Prabhupada started singing, there was no more anxiety. It felt like Vaikuntha.

Prabhupada's voice, for me, is the most distinct and richest voice i have ever heard. It is a voice saturated with love. Effortless and intense at the same time, it's soaked in the honey of prema. Prabhupada was not a trained singer, but his melodies and the inflections of his notes are very unique. In all my travels in India, i have never heard anyone else sing in that way. He had his own mode of expression, based on his pure heart and his inner life, not on a musical style or a desire to imitate or to show off. Prabhupada was never "trying" to be anyone other than himself. He was never a "wannabe" as so many of our godbrothers have become. He never even played the role of world acarya. He just was. And it shows in his voice. The sound of a voice does not lie if one's ears are open. Even if you cannot understand the meaning, a pure voice alone can enlighten you. An impure voice may entertain, but it can never purify anyone.

Many times he told his disciples that we are not musicians but devotees. He warned us that the quality of devotional feeling is what matters; not any technical skills. Yet, he had both: his honey-saturated voice could easily melt one's heart, and his melodies, inflections, mrdunga and harmonium playing were extraordinary and gifted. And Prabhupada did all of it as naturally as a bee takes nectar from a flower.

Prabhupada, please give me this blessing: that i can continue to hear your singing and your melliferous voice in every one of my coming births.

A Small Story

Today i woke up and went to check my email. I have a wireless connection to the internet, via a "data card." It's a small portable modem that connects to my computer via the USB port, and gets a signal from one of the wireless networks. This morning when i connected it, i couldn't get online. A "modem error" message came up on the screen. So i called the wireless company's tech support and explained that the modem wasn't working on either of my two Macs. He said, must be the modem, if it doesn't work on both machines. He advised me to go back to the store where i purchased it and swap it or upgrade the card.

That meant a trip to Boston. Since i found the store originally when i was on my way to the temple one day last month, naturally i thought it would be a good chance to have darshan of Sri Sri Radha Gopi Ballabha. I decided when i moved to Cambridge that i would go once a week for darshan. Not because the temple atmosphere was inspiring, but because the deities are charming, transcendental, and i was lucky enough to be there when they originally were brought to Boston and personally installed by Srila Prabhupada. Why else would Krishna want to live in Boston, i thought, except on the invitation of his beloved pure devotee?

I got to the temple around noon, just in time for the Noon arotik. I rang the bell (the front door was locked) and one mataji let me in. I took off my shoes and thanked her. Inside the temple, the deities looked gorgeous. I commend the devotees and in particular, the pujaris, for keeping up a high standard of beauty and regularity in the deity worship. There was a tape playing, so i chanted a few rounds during the arotik. An older Indian man arrived with a large cloth bag. He stood in front of the deities, carefully taking items out of his bag and arranging them on a tray. Tulasi manjaris, milk sweets, fruits, a $20 bill and a few tupperware containers with unknown contents. He placed them on a plastic tray on the arotik table, after the pujari had finished his offering. He also had what looked like an invitation in his hand that he was offering to Radha Gopi Ballabha. This offering the invitation and praying went on for awhile. I thought the man was perhaps inviting the Lord and seeking his blessings for a wedding.

After the pujari took the tray of offerings from the man, he handed the pujari the printed invitation and requested he place it on the altar. Then, the man walked around me (so he would not walk in front of me and offend me) to the Donation Box and made another cash donation. I thought the whole exchange was touching. As he was leaving the temple room, i wanted to say something to him. "So you invited the Lord to your daughter's wedding?" I asked, just guessing. "Yes," the man quietly replied, "my daughter is getting married," as he reached into his bag to offer me one of the milk sweets still in the bag. "I'm sure he will attend," I said back to him, as a way of acknowledging his devotion.

Such an exchange is quite remarkable when you think about it. Someone inviting God to their daughter's wedding. Sure, the father wants blessings, as all parents want, for his daughter's happiness and security. But to personally come to the temple and extend an invitation to the Lord shows the essence of personalism. There are plenty of codes and rituals in all religions, but in a spiritual culture, a pious father humbly asks Krishna, the Supreme Person, to please attend his daughter's wedding.

This is the meaning of the culture that Srila Prabhupada introduced to the West. How come then, his own disciples have such a difficult time to apply it, even amongst their own god brothers and sisters, friends and disciples? The unfortunate answer is, they are not practicing spiritual culture, no matter how many seminars on Radha Kund or Bhagavat Saptas they give. They are practicing a form of material culture, with their own brand of politics, diplomacy and donation/disciple collecting. Personalism is what is missing in Iskcon. The leaders should learn from that simple man whom i met at the temple today. They should get down from their stages and learn to become real spiritualists.

Brighter Than Millions of Suns

Today i was feeling an extreme sense of loneliness. Being here in Cambridge, without knowing a single soul, it seems like a kind of torture sometimes. It's not worse than being in bad company, or being under someone's control, but being alone can make one feel mad at times. Living in the holy dhams, i never felt this kind of feeling, because Krishna's presence can be perceived even by an ordinary person. But being here in this material culture, especially in the West, is another story. There is a great poverty of soul here. A feast for the senses, fast for the soul. An almost maddening fever.

Looking out my window on the 3rd floor of the loft where i'm staying, i stared at the sun which was in the western sky. It was a beautiful clear, spring day, and this was just a half hour or so before sunset. Looking at the sun, a thought came to me: Krishna is brighter than millions of these intense shining balls of light and heat. These are his energy, his creation, his heat and his light. But unlike the sun, he is always with us. Always. In all circumstances, all conditions of life. That thought somehow gave me great comfort and strength. And the understanding, that this feeling of loneliness is just another illusion that we experience in our sojourn thru this world. Sometimes burdened with family, sometimes bound with affection for sons or daughters, husbands or wives, and sometimes, just feeling terribly alone. It's all part of our dream. Because in truth, we are accompanied always by that One who is more effulgent, brighter than millions of suns.

Nitya nityanam centanas cetenanam....the Eternal amongst all eternals,
the Conscious Source amongst conscious beings....
Eko bahunam.... eko means that One, Krishna....
yo vidadhati kaman.... who shines like the sun and is the One who supplies everyone with all our needs, all our desires.

Ravana & Sita

This morning for some reason i was thinking about Ravana. About how he kidnapped Sita, despite having everything he could possibly want. He was king of the most opulent country in the world at the time. He had technology beyond our current advanced science. He was able to create a passage thru the core of the earth (some say to Brazil) to collect the gold that covered Lanka's buildings. He also had the technology to create a staircase to the heavenly planets (long before Led Zeppelin wrote the song). His harem included the most beautiful women in the world, and his fighters were the best military persons. Many of them had mystic powers. Even his advisors were top-notch. In fact, he was a brahman who had vast knowledge of politics and diplomacy. Lord Rama told Laksman to ask Ravana for advice when Ravana was dying on the battlefield. Ravana said that if there is some auspicious work to do, do it immediately, and if there is something inauspicious, one should procrastinate. He cited how he did the opposite: by kidnapping Sita, he had put off his plans to build a passage to heaven. Instead of enjoying in those higher planets, he was now dying from a fatal wound inflicted by Rama.

Ravana's achilles heel, of course, was his lust. He could not shake off the illicit desire he felt in his heart to enjoy the goddess of fortune. Despite the good advice he received within his own circle, he relentlessly pursued her. Similarly, in spite of so many good instructions from various spiritual traditions and teachers, it is very difficult for us to control our senses and become real yogis in this world.

When we look at spiritual institutions like Iskcon we also see how another form of lust, known as pratishta, the desire for prestige, dominates its thinking. Rather than create a model of transparency and individual empowerment as Prabhupada wanted, the powers that be have created a sticky, ugly mess that excludes most of the direct disciples of Srila Prabhupada. Even when a disciple develops the maturity to want to take sannyas, the renounced order, he has to pledge allegiance not to his spiritual master and Krishna, but to the GBC! What a farce.

But returning to the main point, how is is possible to practice spiritual qualities in a world that is so polluted in its consciousness? One needs to listen to the words of saintly persons who have no motivation other than service to guru and God. Even if one is deaf, due to madness, intoxication or illusion, by repeatedly listening to the words and songs of holy persons, it will act on one's heart and gradually it will clear the heart of all muddy things. The lotus of good fortune will grow from that spot.

Love Is As Love Does

Today's headline comes by way of a comment made by Ananda Swarup prabhu in the comments section of my last post. It was in response to another comment about how love should be the standard devotees have for dealing with each other.

Love is the most used and most abused word in English today. "All you need is Love, Love is all you Need." It was true when the Beatles sang it on the first live world television broadcast 40 years ago. And it will always be true. But what is love? Obviously the Beatles didn't know. Neither did anyone else in our "Love Generation" or any other generation. Love is actually fiction in the material world, an illusory condition.

The first time we got a glimpse of what love really is, is when we had our first darshan of Srila Prabhupada. We couldn't see love or Prabhupada properly then, because of the spiritual cataracts in our eyes. But we could sense it. It was very intense, emotional, penetrating and controlled. We had never experienced anything like that before.

Love's first quality is that it is searching after itself. When Prabhupada looked at you (and practically everyone had a similar experience), he could look right thru you, right into your heart. You felt that he was looking at your being, someone you did not know yourself. It was embarassing. Prabhupada, who was overflowing with love for Krishna, was looking for that love in us.

Love is also connected to service. Prabhupada knew we were completely covered by our senses, so he focused our attention to service. He was very expert in encouraging us to engage, to "dovetail" our abilities in service to Krishna. We serve what we love. On the material plane, if someone is our master, we serve him for money, or sometimes, in dire situations, for fear of our life. Everyone loves their life. If someone is our lover, we serve him or her for the enjoyment they give us. If they are our children, we serve them because we identify with them; we see them as extentions of ourself.

Somehow, Prabhupada inspired us to serve Krishna, whom we didn't know at all. None of us were Vedic scholars; most of us had never heard the name "Krishna" before. And Prabhupada also convinced us to live together as a spiritual family. He named that family Iskcon. It was not a new church or religious cult he was founding. It was an association of devotees to cultivate love for Krishna. He created us as devotees. He did not create a hierarchy. He did not create an elite. He wanted us to cooperate as equals. He wanted us to focus on bhakti for the Lord. And to practice tolerance, humility and appreciation for each other.

As my godbrother said, love is as love does. If you see that love in Iskcon, that example of how Srila Prabhupada wanted the devotees to associate, then you don't have a problem. As i've been writing on this blog, i don't see that. I see ambition, greed, incompetence, lack of respect and intolerance. I also see a huge hierarchy in place of the fraternity that Prabhupada wanted. That's why i'm not associating with Iskcon now. But that does not mean i am free to just sit and criticize. I should accept the responsibility to search for love of Krishna, and for the qualities of Prabhupada that are missing in Iskcon, in my own heart. Once i get a glimpse of that in myself, i can easily share it with others. Until that time, at least i can practice kindness, openness and respect for other jivas. And i can share my experiences with others, as i am doing in this blog.

All of this is easier to say than to practice. But this is the great challenge and great blessing given to us by our master. He who showed us what love really is, and what love really does.